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Soccer fans have a chance to see Clint Dempsey, considered one of the greatest U.S.-born goal scorers of all time, as he debuts with the Seattle Sounders against Toronto FC at BMO Field Saturday.

Clint Dempsey, captain of the United States Mens National Soccer Team, raises a Seattle Sounders scarf during a ceremony to introduce him as the newest member of the team, on Aug. 3, prior to a MLS soccer match between the Sounders and FC Dallas in Seattle. Dempsey previously played for Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League. (Ted Warren / The Associated Press)

Toronto FC midfielder Bobby Convey can recall going out for dinner with fellow American footballers Clint Dempsey and Eddie Johnson while all three were playing in the English Premiere League several years ago.

It was fun for three U.S.-born players to meet up on British soil, keep their American roots kindled, and establish well-paying careers in the top rungs of British soccer.

Convey, though, saw something more in Dempsey than companionship; Dempsey was continuing a career trend of scoring at every level he played at. He was something special then, and now, the crest of Dempsey’s career is about to unfold in Toronto Saturday, where Convey and the FC face Dempsey and the Seattle Sounders at BMO Field.

“He just has a lot of skill, and he’s a big guy so he can handle the physical side as well . . . it’s just a combination of a bunch of things,” Convey said about Dempsey, who is expected to make his debut with Seattle Saturday, and with it, open in earnest the debate on whether he is
the
face of the MLS now.

That superstar wrapping is now prefixed to the 30-year-old Dempsey; he’s considered one of the greatest U.S.-born goal scorers of all time, and he’s left the English Premier League to join the overwhelmingly successful (attendance-wise) Sounders. It’s a move that is also being hailed as the latest and most important step for the MLS and its quest to become one of the world’s great soccer leagues.

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Convey doesn’t have time to debate such weighty contexts to Dempsey’s arrival in Toronto. But he does understand why Dempsey is such a great player; the two have been side by side since playing together at the U.S. national junior team level, then the national team, where Dempsey was captain. Both pursued career moves overseas, and now they’re back in the MLS as opponents.

“I think it’s more instincts than anything else,” Convey said of Dempsey’s stardom as a player. “Going to England helped him get sharper as a player and a person in this sport. He learned to play against some of the greatest players in the world there. When you go there and score 50 goals (in six seasons for Fulham, then 7 last year for Tottenham), it’s the best league in the world and that kinda speaks for itself.”

Dempsey, who holds numerous scoring records and feats — his game-winning chip shot for Fulham over Juventus in 2010 was branded “the most important goal in Fulham’s history” — is likely to sub in to Saturday’s game against the FC.

He has had only a handful of practices since joining Seattle on the heels of a multi-million-dollar contract, and Seattle was said to have been the logical choice for the U.S. national team captain, who reportedly had talks with Los Angeles and Toronto as well.

From Convey to Sounder players witnessing his first workouts this week, the awe over the reach of Dempsey’s skills has refused to fade.

“It’s just like when we got Mauro Rosales and he tried out for us in Florida. Within a half-hour of the first practice we said, ‘OK, this guy can play.’ And it’s the same thing with Clint: You can tell he can play,” Seattle coach Sigi Schmid told reporters in Seattle.

In addition to the accolades and praise for his playing, Dempsey’s legend has transcended the pitch, weaving in themes like global impact for the MLS.

“This signing ranks right at the very top,” league president Don Garber told Sports Illustrated.

“We have been going through a process that started almost 10 years ago to try and find the players that could really make a statement about our league and our plan to be a legitimate player on the global stage. That really started with Landon Donovan. MLS isn’t what it is today if Landon hadn’t spent a majority of his career here.

“Then it kicked to a higher gear with David Beckham, which was a statement that MLS was serious about having well-known international players who’d perform for us on and off the field.”

“You follow from that Thierry Henry and Cuauhtemoc Blanco, who were able to make a difference for us,” Garber continued.

“With Clint, it takes all of this to an even higher level. For the first time we have a world-renowned player who has international experience who’s saying, ‘I want to come to Major League Soccer in my prime.’ We hope that’s the beginning of a new wave of players like Clint who will make the same statement. I do believe over time our business will grow to the point where you’re going to see players like this in every market.”

Dempsey is merely focused on this weekend and getting the latest instalment of his ever rising career off to a good start.

“Once you’re able to help the team win in some capacity, whether it’s assists or getting goals, I think you start to get on a streak from there,” Dempsey, who is also a decent rapper, told reporters in Seattle this week. “I think that’s the key getting settled in — once I get my first goal or assist.”

Convey believes Dempsey is absolutely ready to take over the larger than life soccer-player role he seems destined for.

“He’s faced the best players in the world week in and week out, and he’s had a lot of pressure put on him from the start of his career,” Convey said. “You have to be at the top of your game all the time or you will be replaced. Clint is one of those players who just does special things on the field . . . people will see it and they’re in for a treat.”

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